Special Needs Advocacy Resource Book: What You Can Do Now to Advocate for Your Exceptional Child's Education [Paperback]

Rich Weinfeld (Author), Michelle Davis (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 2008

The Special Needs Advocacy Resource Book: What You Can Do Now to Advocate for Your Exceptional Child s Education is a unique handbook that teaches parents how to work with schools to achieve optimal learning situations and accommodations for their child s needs. From IEPs and 504 Plans to IDEA and NCLB, navigating today's school system can be difficult for even the most up-to-date, education savvy parent.

Special needs advocates Rich Weinfeld and Michelle Davis provide parents and professional advocates with concise, easy-to-understand definitions and descriptions of legal terms and school regulations, along with checklists, tips, questionnaires, and other tools. Topics covered in this handy guide include how to gather accurate information about a child's education, navigating school meetings, understanding education law, best practices in the classroom, working effectively with parents and school systems, educational options beyond the standard, and much more.

Parents and advocates will not only feel informed by Weinfeld and Davis vast knowledge of the inner workings of the school system they'll be empowered to help their kids succeed in school.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The Special Needs Advocacy Resource Book is an excellent resource for families and educators interested in developing advocacy skills. Using a common sense approach, it provides the reader with crucial information about laws related to special and gifted education, classroom evaluation practices, and key insights into how advocates, families, and educators can develop positive working relationships focused on children's needs.

--Patti Ralabate, Senior Policy Analyst-Special Education, Education Policy and Practice Department, National Education Association

Amazon.com Review

Most schools are not equipped to deal with the special educational needs of many children and Special Needs Advocacy Resource Book: What You Can Do Now to Advocate for Your Exceptional Child's Education is a handbook for both educators and parents to help them do everything they need to ensure that every child receives the proper education they need. With a complete and comprehensive guide to help parents and educators navigate the bureaucracy of the modern education system, and covering all topics that could come up in the process, Special Needs Advocacy Resource Book: What You Can Do Now to Advocate for Your Exceptional Child's Education is highly recommended for community library education collections, and for anyone concerned about their child's special educational needs.

--James A. Cox, Editor-in-Chief, Midwest Book Review

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Product Details

• Paperback: 328 pages
• Publisher: Prufrock Press; 1 edition (March 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1593633092
• ISBN-13: 978-1593633097
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #206,163 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great parent resource..., August 31, 2008

By 

starlitekaty (Texas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Special Needs Advocacy Resource Book: What You Can Do Now to Advocate for Your Exceptional Child's Education (Paperback)

I was in the midst of trying to decide how to handle an upcoming ARD situation and found out about this book. I really liked its short and very readable chapter approach, as well as the found the frequent parent tips to the side to be very helpful. I would recommend it for anyone seeking an overview of how to advocate for your child in the special education process.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My New Desk Reference for Special Education, May 6, 2008

By 

Tony Messina (Silver Spring, MD-USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Special Needs Advocacy Resource Book: What You Can Do Now to Advocate for Your Exceptional Child's Education (Paperback)

This is a really smart book even for an educator of thirty plus years such as myself. The tools section is an invaluable guide for individuals who are navigating the special needs arena for the first time. I found the education law section to be a welcomed update on special education law and very useful to both parents and practitioners alike. I am keeping my copy on my desk in my office as a desk reference. I just ordered seven copies for my administrative team and will be recommending this book to fellow educators. This is an important hands on approach to the often-messy world of special education advocacy and a book that is long overdue. Thank you Rich and Michelle this is quality work.

Tony Messina
Head of School
Chelsea School, Silver Spring, MD
A college preparatory school for students with learning disabilities.

5.0 out of 5 stars A must have resource!, March 30, 2009

By 

Kristin Conaboy "Occupational Therapist" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Special Needs Advocacy Resource Book: What You Can Do Now to Advocate for Your Exceptional Child's Education (Paperback)

The Special Needs Advocacy Resource Book is a must have for anyone working with children in education today. We cannot keep it in our parent resource library as it is the most frequently borrowed book! It is extraordinarily helpful in finding paths for success for both gifted students and students with special needs by sharing strategies, using easy to understand language, and providing highly functional accomodations. The chapters read easily and have invaluable tools that really support families, caregivers, and school leaders in not only navigating the special education process but in cultivating a team approach while keeping the children's best interests at the forefront. Thank you for writing this book! A much needed tool for the education community!